Street Sketchbook Journeys

Happy New Year! I hope everyone has a great one and you all achieve at least one thing you really want to do this year!

Now. Blog writing. I buy and receive a lot of books, I have a shelf full of arty/fiction books looking at me with contempt in their imaginary eyes because I haven't read them yet. One of those books is one I was given on my birthday probably about 2 years ago now called 'Street Sketchbook Journeys' by Tristan Manco. Well, a few weeks ago, I started reading it.

This book is a compendium of some of the most cutting edge graffiti artists functioning today. Now I ain't no big graffiti art fan. I like graffiti art, I've seen some pretty cool stuff, admittedly mostly by Banksy; but this book has really opened my eyes to the diversity of graffiti artists out there. In this book, Tristan Manco mainly looks at the work of artists operating in Mexico and Brazil, but others are featured from the likes of Poland and Ukraine.

Every page is engulfed with large full-colour photos of each respective graffiti artists work, alongside developmental sketches and illustrations. The text feels like it doesn't need to be read, as the images speak for themselves; BUT the text gives you an insight into how each graffiti artist works and their thought processes behind it. What I like is none of the artists sound pretentious, I find when I read about graphic designers/illustrators/artists etc, that they can come across a bit 'high and mighty' when they talk about their work which I feel can ostracise a reader (unintentionally). Whilst the whole point for these graffiti artists is for their work to be accessible by the public and to welcome them into the world of street art, and this feeling is conveyed throughout 'Street Sketchbook Journeys'.

I haven't finished reading this book yet, but I'm really enjoying all the different artists I have discovered so far, some of my favourites are Losdelaefe, Thais Beltrame and Ramon Martins. This books shows a great diversity of styles and I think it is rather inspirational. Definitely a refreshing change.